THREE-QUARTERS OF ‘BE A CHAMPION’ VOLUNTEERS INSPIRED TO VOLUNTEER AGAIN

A survey of participants of the ‘Be a Champion’ an inspire project of London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, led by the National Union of Students (NUS) and funded by Coca-Cola, has found that the projects have had an overwhelmingly positive impact on both the students involved and their local communities.

Individuals felt they benefit both socially and professionally - 69% of students felt that their involvement in the project had led them to develop new skills; 72% have developed new friendships; 66% felt that their self-esteem improved; 62% felt that they felt more connected to their community.

80% of volunteers felt the project had a positive impact on others.

It is believed that the project increased student volunteering by 4%, with 49% of those who volunteered being new to volunteering, suggesting the inspiration from the Games has had a real difference on getting students into volunteering.

Danielle Grufferty, NUS Vice-President (Society and Citizenship), said:

“It’s great that students’ around the country were able to use the Olympic and Paralympic as an inspiration for some fantastic volunteering opportunities.

“Volunteering is already a huge part of student life and we hope that this project will inspire even more students to volunteer in their local communities.”

Jon Woods, General Manger, Coca-Cola Great Britain and Ireland, said:

"We're proud to have supported the 'Be a Champion' programme and were impressed by students from across the country who ran projects in their local communities to celebrate London 2012.

"It's extremely encouraging to see that so many students reported a positive impact as a result of their involvement and are motivated to continue volunteering now the Games are over."